• DDR2-667 SODIMMs
• 1GB upgrade module and 2GB upgrade kit are compatible with the MacBook, the MacBook Pro, and Intel-based versions of the iMac
• 3GB upgrade kit is compatible with the MacBook Pro, and the models of the iMac supporting 3GB of system memory
• Lifetime warranty

To save you time if you don't know which ram to get for your intel mini, this is exactly what you want. I have 2gb now and works perfect, its also by far cheaper than any other mac compatible ram I found.

Ok, I see that 2 gigs is the max according to Apple, but What if you changed out the processor in an intel mini and put in a core 2 duo? might it be able to address 4 gigs? has anyone tried this ? I do know that 2 gig modules are available and they are expensive but perhaps with a processor upgrade more ram becomes addressable.

I am not sure, and please correct my assumption, but the core duo is 32 bit right? and the core2 duo is 64 bit? if this is true, then maybe the mini's can indeed address 4 gigs after a merom is installed? Anyone out there have access to some 2 gig sticks and an upgraded processor who could test this?

I would love to see what the results are....Could you then run one 2 gig stick and have it single channel until you could afford the other mate for it? This might be a good way to piece-meal some pricey upgrades...

I hope to hear about these possibilities.

Valanda

I asked Ramjet a few pointed questions, since they used to do some of their own R&D for system specs, and they said that the mini's would hold 2 gig modules, but that the (with stock processor) unit would only utilize 2 gigs of the 4 that you had installed. They had not tried an upgraded processor as of the time I wrote to them about a month ago. Again, perhaps with an upgraded processor this could be possible.

I know that Apple has been famous for listing system specs that are a bit inacurate in the past. Just because no one has a 1 gig ram module doesn't mean that one will not be made...and then installed. The Beige G3's could do a lot more than what Apple said they could, including overclocking and ram. Of course some of us had to chance frying our boards to find out some stuff but the excitment is sometimes worth it.

I have previously seen threads on upgrading the PPC Mac Mini's to 2 GB sticks of RAM on other forums and it did not work. That is all the evidence that I have so sorry I don't have any firm proof. I recommend upgrading if you can to a Intel Mac mini as they are much more capable than the PPC mini's ever were.

Now about the RAM limits in the Intel Mac Mini. My observations are this:

The only other socketed Mac is the iMac which already comes with a C2D. The mac mini doesn't have the C2D option yet, but we know the merom chip will work.

I am sure that apple will have limited the C2D macs to 3 GB to keep them from encroaching on the Mac Pro's territory. So was there a s system board change between the CD and C2D iMacs? The only change I can see is going from Airport Extreme (802.11g) to Airport Extreme (802.11pre-n). If there are different motherboards in the two iMacs I would bet that 3 GB and definitely 4GB of ram will not work in the Mac Mini.

I would love not to have to waste money to try this, because I am sure someone else somewhere has already done this; however, I plan to try it in the next few weeks. I will report what happens.

I am sure that apple will have limited the C2D macs to 3 GB to keep them from encroaching on the Mac Pro's territory.

As far as I've seen, the 3GB limit is not artificial. It comes from the fact that the current motherboards (Mini, iMac, MacBook, MacBook Pro, though not the Mac Pro) all use the same Intel memory controller, which is 32-bit. The 32-bit memory controller allows for access of about 3.2GB of memory when 4GB is installed, hence the 3GB limit imposed by Apple.

This 3GB limit also appears on a number of other manufacturer's machines, Samsung and Lenovo notebooks come to mind. It's not just an OS level limitation.

I am sure that apple will have limited the C2D macs to 3 GB to keep them from encroaching on the Mac Pro's territory.

As far as I've seen, the 3GB limit is not artificial. It comes from the fact that the current motherboards (Mini, iMac, MacBook, MacBook Pro, though not the Mac Pro) all use the same Intel memory controller, which is 32-bit. The 32-bit memory controller allows for access of about 3.2GB of memory when 4GB is installed, hence the 3GB limit imposed by Apple.

This 3GB limit also appears on a number of other manufacturer's machines, Samsung and Lenovo notebooks come to mind. It's not just an OS level limitation.

How this plays in to if the current Mini with a C2D could take 3GB, or if there's a motherboard change is still unknown to me.

Right well I guess since the C2D Merom is for mobile devices it makes sense that it would have a 3 GB limit. I think that 3 GB of RAM will work in the Mini with C2D, but that will also be against Appple's recommendation of pairing same brand and same sized memory together for maximum performance on Macs using the Intel GMA 950 video processor. So will the benefits of 3 GB of RAM out weight the 2 GB of paired memory?

I am sure that apple will have limited the C2D macs to 3 GB to keep them from encroaching on the Mac Pro's territory.

As far as I've seen, the 3GB limit is not artificial. It comes from the fact that the current motherboards (Mini, iMac, MacBook, MacBook Pro, though not the Mac Pro) all use the same Intel memory controller, which is 32-bit. The 32-bit memory controller allows for access of about 3.2GB of memory when 4GB is installed, hence the 3GB limit imposed by Apple.

This 3GB limit also appears on a number of other manufacturer's machines, Samsung and Lenovo notebooks come to mind. It's not just an OS level limitation.

How this plays in to if the current Mini with a C2D could take 3GB, or if there's a motherboard change is still unknown to me.

Right well I guess since the C2D Merom is for mobile devices it makes sense that it would have a 3 GB limit. I think that 3 GB of RAM will work in the Mini with C2D, but that will also be against Appple's recommendation of pairing same brand and same sized memory together for maximum performance on Macs using the Intel GMA 950 video processor. So will the benefits of 3 GB of RAM out weight the 2 GB of paired memory?

Hm... A few smattering of other posts here and there suggest that the bench marks for more ram vs the bench marks for paired ram are very close togehter. This tells me that it depends on what you are doing as to wether or not the larger ram or the paired ram is better for you. For instance, 2nd life does not run for crap on an intel mini with 1 gig ram but perhaps it would if there were 2 gigs. HOWEVER, for some reason when booting into xp pro 2nd life does run ok, and you can even up the video to use the shinies and reflectives and all that neat bells and whistles stuff. but not in os X. If you are doing processor intensive stuff that is not being rendered in 3D then perhaps the higher ram is for you. personally I would like the 3 gigs. I don't really play much in second life, and If I did, I would get a machine with the ability to install a better graphics card, so... I have a wonderful Mini instead and I love it. Hit some bench marks and see what you can find for performance based on your application needs.

If you have a Core2 chip, max RAM is 3GB. You can use either 1x1GB + 1x2GB (cheaper upgrade), or 2x2GB to get the dual channel speed boost, but only ~3.2 GB will be recognized. This is due to the 945 chipset using a 32bit memory controller.

If you have a Core2 chip, max RAM is 3GB. You can use either 1x1GB + 1x2GB (cheaper upgrade), or 2x2GB to get the dual channel speed boost, but only ~3.2 GB will be recognized. This is due to the 945 chipset using a 32bit memory controller.

Do we have any empirical proof of that? As far as I know, no one here has tried it.

If you have a Core2 chip, max RAM is 3GB. You can use either 1x1GB + 1x2GB (cheaper upgrade), or 2x2GB to get the dual channel speed boost, but only ~3.2 GB will be recognized. This is due to the 945 chipset using a 32bit memory controller.

I looked online and the max ram is still only 2GB_________________I am a freelance dvd author, and graphic designer. contact me if you need work done.
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In the MacBook the May 2006 models don't support memory greater than 2GB.

That prompts a couple of questions:

Is the mini chipset equivalent to the May 2006 macbook or the Nov 2006 macbook?
Is the max memory entirely dependent on the processor installed?
If it depends on when your mini was purchased/manufactured, how do you tell?